PSALM CXXXVII. FAST by thy waters, They sate 'neath the willows Poetry. The marsh fowl were screaming; Drunk with their deep grief The maidens were seeming Voices the rudest Rang on that river,— แ Slay with your whinyard- Sighing and wanting From the chords pealing, To strange ears revealing- Hull College. The Prayer of the Rescued. LL.D. (Being Lines addressed to Rev. W. Blood, one of the survivors of the wreck of the Amazon, by Rev. J. R. Leifchild, A.M.) RESCUED from the stormy deep, Tears express my heart's desire. Let me preach to dying men,* As a man escaped from dying; Let me ever pray as when On the foaming billow lying! Composed after hearing Mr. Blood preach at Clifton Church. Review of Religious Publications. ANCIENT AND MODERN INDIA. By the late W. COOKE TAYLOR, LL.D. Revised and continued to the present time, by P. J. MACKENNA, ESQ. Second Edition, with great Amendments and Improvements. London: James Madden. 1851. INDIA is an object of interest to all reflecting Englishmen. Its extent of territory and number of population alone make it worthy of attention. There are various reasons which induce men to manifest an interest in India. These reasons take their form and fashion, in a great degree, from the professions and pursuits of the several parties who make India the topic of their study, or the sphere of their action. The merchant looks on India as the scene of increasing commerce. The scholar views India as an abundant tributary to literature. Arabic, Persian, and Sanscrit books, or scrolls, here reveal the deep and beautiful thinkings of oriental writers, and afford help to the biblical critic by their allusions to ancient customs, or their illustrations of oriental sayings. The politician looks on India as a wide arena, on which great principles are to be tried and great results are to be produced. These aspects of India are neither trifling nor insignificant; but, happily for the millions of human beings which are found between Cape Comorin and the Hymalaya Mountains, there are not a few in this country who look upon the mercantile projects, and political schemes, and scholastic discoveries in India, as subservient to greater and more lasting benefits than those which simply relate to their present social and political condition. The Christian philanthropist pities the teeming population of India, and brings all the appliances of benevolence to promote their social and political improvement. For this purpose, he uses the means which shall, under the blessing of God, extricate their minds from the thraldom of a degrading idolatry, and elevate them with a hope of immortality and eternal joy. The subjugation of India to British power furnishes a gloomy page in the history of colonization. Our moralists have censured the Spaniards for their cruelties to the Peruvians. We have been but little behind the Spaniard in our atrocities to the Indians. We have set at defiance every principle of honesty. We have robbed, for two reasons: because we coveted our neighbour's goods, and because we could steal with impunity. We disturbed the aborigines in the quiet possession of their paternal lands, and then called them "freebooters," and shot them as wild beasts, when they asserted their rights and attempted to regain what we had stolen from them. The authors of the volume before us seem to regard with complacency the whole conduct of the British government towards the aborigines. We furnish our readers with a specimen of the spirit and style in which the book is written: "The Marquis of Hastings arrived in Calcutta, October 13, 1813, with the authority of Governor-General and Commanderin-Chief; for the government was fully aware that it would be soon necessary to resort to strong measures, for the protection of our subjects and allies from the inroads of those large hordes of freebooters, whose excesses appeared to increase with our forbearance. It seems, however, to have been expected that hostilities might be avoided, and tranquillity maintained, by forming alliances with such states as had not become predatory. At such a time, it was fortunate that the government of India was intrusted to a nobleman equally distinguished for his diplomatic and military attainments, and who had given many signal proofs of his talents as a soldier and a statesman." The words we have marked in italics might be applied to other parties with greater justice than to the men whose ancestors had been in the rightful possession of their lands for centuries before they were exposed to the aggression of British arms. There is but little ground for glorying in British triumphs in India. On the contrary, to every right-minded man, there is much cause for humiliation, that a nation like ours, with its high pretensions to civilization, honour, and religion, should have subjected so large a portion of the human family to its rule, and so slowly and so stintingly conferred benefits, as it has done on the inhabitants of Hindostan. For many years the British government in India was marked by a mean, selfish policy. It appeared as though it had nothing to give, but existed only to get. As Mr. Mackenna says, For two hundred and fifty years the Hon. Company has desired its agents to make money, not converts. Its moral and social bearing on the Indian mind was decidedly injurious. Instead of carrying with it a remedial, enlightening, and elevating influence, it seemed determined to rivet more firmly on the aborigines the chains of social slavery; to keep them undisturbed in their delusive idolatry; to infatuate them by adding military pomp to their idolatrous rites and processions; and to guard, with the utmost care, these victims of social and moral oppression from the approach of any good Samaritan, who wished to heal their wounds and place them in a position where the process of restoration should be commenced and perfected." The social condition of the Ryot, or little farmer, is not any better now than it was a century ago. In some parts of India, it is worse than it was at that period; because, in addition to the Zemindars and Moslems, who formerly oppressed him by their extortionate imposts, he has to pay his levy, or tax, to the British government. The Bengal Ryot is described as "one who lives on coarse rice and dall (vetches), for good vegetables or fish would be luxuries to him. His dress consists of a bit of rag around his loins, and a slender sheet called chudder. His bed is a coarse mat and a pillow; his dwelling a low thatched roof; his only property an uncouth plough, and two badlyfed bullocks, and one or two waterpots called lotahs, with a little seed called beej-dhan. From early morn till noon, and from noon till sunset, he toils; and still he is in appearance and in reality a haggard, poverty-smitten, wretched creature, often fasting for days and nights without food, or having only one miserable meal in twenty-four hours. The East India Company once had the power of preventing much of this misery; but instead of doing so, the Governors-General of the time rivetted the chains on the Ryots; and now their present agents cannot find a remedy for the evil which their predecessors established sixty years ago." Page 540. This quotation most clearly shows, that the social condition of the Hindus has not been bettered by British rule in India. Proofs are not wanting to show, that the Governors-General, with one or two exceptions, did what they could to keep the Hindus in the bondage of a degrading idolatry, and to prevent them from receiving the blessings of the gospel. We are aware that we shall be told, that it was a condition that the government made with the subdued Rajahs, that they should not interfere with the religion of the natives. We ask, in return, how does it happen that so many other conditions were wantonly violated, and this so tenaciously observed? Or, if this be an inconvenient question to answer, we ask, where is the document containing the condition that the British government should aid and promote idolatry in India? An answer to this question would be giving information to the public. It is well known that no such document is in existence. And yet what are the facts of the case? They are these. All the gorgeousness and pomp that could be added to Hindu idolatrous festivals, were added by ranks of British soldiery, marching to martial music, with banners floating in the breeze. Decorations for the idols and for the temples were provided and arranged by the British authorities; the pilgrim tax collected by order of the English Resident, and a portion of the revenue thence derived sent to this country. The Christian missionary was prohibited from entering India by the government; so that the first missionaries who entered on this vast field of labour were introduced under the auspices of the Danish authorities. In the year 1813 Mr. Wilberforce took occasion, on the renewal of the East India Company's Charter, to introduce the subject of Christian missions in India to the notice of parliament; and he "happily succeeded in throwing open these vast dependencies of the empire to the free entrance of Christian truth." Though Mr. Mackenna maintains a prudential silence about the British soldiery being employed to aid and abet the idolatry of the East, yet he has the candour to state, "That, towards the close of the last century, William Carey, a man of the most indomitable resolution, went from Northamptonshire to Calcutta to preach the gospel; and he succeeded, against every difficulty, in effecting his purpose. Other missionaries from England joined him in 1799; and, as the East India Company would not countenance their endeavours, they found an asylum at Serampore, under the Danish flag. They established a fraternity, and by teaching and preaching, and by composing tracts in the different languages, they made some converts; but their efforts in extending the benefits of education were far more signal. Many natives have acquired information on scientific subjects, which tends to promote their happiness as social beings. Mr. Carey was protected, on account of his varied learning, by the Marquis of Wellesley, who appointed him to be a Professor in the College of Fort William." This is a gratuitous testimony to Mr. Carey's literary competence for the position to which he was appointed. For he was on the spot, not by the patronage of the existing government, but in opposition to its decisions touching the question of Christian missions. Nor was there any servility, or truckling to authority, in the conduct of Dr. Carey. Mr. Mackenna tells us, "The most decided opponents to the will of government were the Baptists, who, from their settlement at Serampore, during twenty years, that is from 1793 to 1813, fought the battle of the English missions in India, and by their perseverance gained the result of having freedom granted to all kinds of missions." great heroism in those Christian men, who in this country had to encounter banter and ridicule, while they sought at the hands of government the permission to introduce Christian missions into India; but their heroism was as the dust of the balance compared with that of Dr. Carey and his com It was panions, who "fought the battle" in the very camp of the foe. And these men were acknowledged learned men, even their enemies being judges. Yet Mr. Mackenna has the temerity to question their literary competence for the work of translating the Scriptures from the original Hebrew and Greek, into the languages of India. His words are, "Their Indian versions are translations from the English one, which is replete with mistakes of Eastern imagery." This vague and unsustained assertion, we are prepared to say, is not true. It is possible that a solitary version, in some one of the numerous languages of India, may be found, which was translated from the English Bible; but this is the exception. The rule is, that the Indian versions-such as the Sungskrit, Hindu, Hindustani, Bengalee, Marhatta, Goojuratee, Canarese, and Tamil-have been made from the original text, and that by missionaries who were good Hebrew and Greek scholars, and competent to avail themselves of all the critical apparatus which this country could supply. In most cases, the missionary has been assisted in his work of translation by a Pundit, a native savant, whose familiar acquaintance with his own language has aided the missionary in the use of those idiomatic forms of speech which only a native can fully understand. And, even with such assistance, the work of translation has not been done hastily. Revision has succeeded revision, consultation with Pundits and missionaries has succeeded consultation; and, after the utmost care in correcting and improving the manuscript translation, a single copy of a gospel or epistle has been printed; this has been carefully examined by Pundits and missionaries, and, after such revision, an edition has been struck off for circulation. Not only the literary competence of the missionaries, the assistance and co-operation of learned Pundits, and the patience with which the work has been done, furnish presumptive evidence that the translations are correct; but direct testimonies of Professors put the question beyond a doubt. We may just take two or three of these testimonies as specimens of others which might be adduced. THE GOOJURATEE. Haloojee, Goojuratee Pundit in the College of Fort William." I have examined the book, respecting which you made inquiry of me. The language is correct; if you doubt, let the book be sent to Goojurat; the people there will all understand it. The only places in which they will find any difficulty will be those which contain the names of men and places." THE SUNGSKRIT. Rum-nath Vachusputee, Chief Pundit of the College of Fort William. "I have read the part of the holy book which you have sent me. The Sungskrit is perfectly correct. There are two or three trivial mistakes in the printing, but there is no fault in the language and diction." THE ASSAMEE VERSION. Three Assamee Brahmins, studying at Nudeeya, thus write:"We have received the specimens of the Assamee Scriptures which you sent to us. We have read and understood it: it is excellently done. Whoever of the Assam people shall read this book will understand it."* Since these testimonies were given, versions of the Sacred Scriptures in other languages of India have been submitted to a similar ordeal, and have secured similar results. And we have no hesitation in saying, that if the missionaries had done nothing more than translate the Sacred Scriptures into the numerous languages of the East, they would have done a work which would amply compensate for any expenditure of money and human life which has been incurred. For though missionaries die, the word of God remains. "All flesh is grass; the grass withereth, the flower fadeth, but the word of our God shall stand for ever." But to return to Mr. Mackenna and his chapter entitled "Christianity in India in 1851." The whole animus of this chapter is to impugn the work of the missionaries and their qualifications for the position they occupy. Now there has been sufficient evidence before the public that their work has been to a very great extent successful, and thus their competency has been fully demonstrated. The most decided testimonies to their success have been spontaneously given by disinterested individuals. If Mr. Mackenna did not know this, why did he undertake to write upon a subject on which he had not sufficient information? If he did know this, why is he so regardless of truth and candour as to depreciate the men and their labours, when the most competent judges deem them worthy of the highest commendation? We hope, for his credit as a man, Mr. Mackenna can plead want of information, though that plea will not add much to his reputation as an author. The testimonies to which we refer are not confined to private correspondence, but are found in publications with which a writer on "Christianity in India in 1851" ought to be acquainted. The Calcutta and Bengal journals, native and English, and The Times, Aug. 6, 1851, are publications to which Mr. Mackenna no doubt had access. Yet, with these documents before him, Mr. Mackenna says, "That the missionaries have converted very few; yet when they may have induced one or two apparently to adopt their particular tenets, * Ninth Memoir respecting the Translations and Editions of the Sacred Scriptures, conducted by the Serampore Missionaries, 1823. it is their fashion to make a clamour in the newspapers and by pamphlets, although too frequently they are not secure of their new converts for any length of time." Against this statement we place the testimony borne by The Bhaskeer, a native paper, in the Bengalee language, edited by an orthodox Hindu gentleman, and one who took an active part at the late meeting: "We know very well that a very great number of Hindus have become Christians-even of those who have not been baptized, and thus publicly professed Christianity, a great many adopt in secret Christian practices." Such an admission, by the avowed organ of the orthodox Hindus at Calcutta, needs no comment. The meeting alluded to in The Bhaskeer is the Great Anti-Missionary Meeting, held on the 25th of May, in the Oriental Seminary, Calcutta. It was called by some of the most influential Hindus, for the purpose of adopting some measures which should make the return of the Christian converts to Hinduism more easy than it had been. One of the speakers stated, as an ostensible reason for calling the assembly together, that a Rhaudi Brahmin convert had applied to him, saying, "He repents of his having become a Christian, and is now desirous of being a Hindu again." The name of this Brahmin convert was Taraprosaud Chatterjea. This assertion was met by the following letter: To the Editor of the Bengal Hurkaru. Sir,-A statement having been made at the meeting held in the Oriental Seminary last Sabbath, the 25th inst., to the effect that we were inclined to return to Hinduism, if means were adopted to render such a step practicable, we wish, through the medium of your paper, to give that statement plain and explicit denial. We have never regretted becoming Christians, and, therefore, on no occasion to any one have we expressed a desire to be received back again into the religion we have lately repudiated. a We embraced Christianity, because we believed it to be true, nor have we discovered anything in it to lead us to an opposite opinion. The inhabitants of Kalighat and the neighbourhood know that most of us had nothing of a worldly nature to gain by embracing Christianity, since our friends loved us tenderly, and our families are of acknowledged respectability. Some of us, since we became Christians, have been invited to return to our homes, and the most tempting offers have been made to us; but we have invariably replied, that though wishful to live on terms of concord with our relatives, we would not forsake Christianity, nor willingly do anything inconsistent with its commandments. Whatever, therefore, may be done to render the return of Christians to Hinduism practicable, we have not the smallest in tention of availing ourselves of such an arrangement. The assertion, therefore, made at the meeting, relative to one of our number, Taraprosaud Chatterjea, and the insinuation made respecting us all, is utterly without foundation. CHUNDERNAUTH BANARGEE. TARAPROSAUD CHATTERJEA. When men are prepared thus boldly to avow their attachment to Christianity, and their determination not to return to Hinduism, on any terms whatever, there appears but little authority for Mr. Mackenna's assertion, that the missionaries "are not secure of their converts for any length of time." The letter in The Times of Aug. 6 was called forth by a grossly inaccurate report of the Anti-Missionary Meeting in Calcutta, which had been furnished by some correspondent who had no friendly feeling towards Christian missions. We regret that our space will not allow us to give more than an extract from that excellent letter. The writer proceeds:― "The Friend of India, a Bengal newspaper, states-'In Calcutta, at the present moment, there are hundreds of young men, who, though not exactly Christians, are yet deeply convinced of the superiority of the gospel creed to their own, and who would gladly embrace any opportunity of bursting their fetters, and avowing openly the convictions they secretly entertain. We cannot but think, that the great Hindoo meeting held on the 25th of May, and the resolutions expressed and adopted at it, constitute one of the most important events that have occurred in India in the present century. It was in fact, though not in name, a Hindoo protest against one of the more prominent evils of the system of caste which has been for centuries considered the bulwark of Hinduism. We have one more word to say, and it is rather for our readers in England, than those in India:We have heard a great deal too much of late of the small number of converts made in Bengal, and of the gradual extinction of missionary usefulness. The meeting of which we have just spoken, is in itself a sufficient answer to all such calumnies. The very foundations of native society must have been shaken, before men, aptly described as more Hindu than the Poorans, would come forward with a proposal for lightening the massive chain which for two thousand years has crushed the intellectual and religious activity of one-eighth of the human race, and that for the avowed object of saving Hinduism from the encroachments of Christianity. The meeting, it is evident, looked upon the missionaries as the great enemies whose exertions and activity required to be baffled; and, while they |